Sunday, July 29, 2012

Fishers in Gaza are under assault daily, braving Israeli warships in
order to secure the products of Gaza’s Mediterranean seacoast, which
support the livelihood of over 70,000 Palestinians in Gaza. Since 2006,
the Israeli siege on Gaza has penned Gaza’s fishers into 3 nautical
miles of the shore – when most fishing requires at least a 10 mile
range, and even the 1993 Oslo accords secured 20 miles of fishing access
for Palestinian fishers. Gaza’s fishery has lost 85% of its income
because of the Israeli siege.
Jase Tanner, of the Vancouver Delegation to Gaza, filmed the
following dramatic footage during a trip out to sea during his time in
Gaza with a longtime fishing family, when their boat was fired upon by
an Israeli warship, their steering disabled as they attempted to quickly
sail toward shore. (Numerous fishers have been arrested and jailed, and
fishing boats confiscated, by the Israeli navy.)
This is the daily experience of Gaza’s fishers – most often unnoticed
and not filmed by international activists. Share this footage to inform
the world about what is happening to fishers in Gaza as they attempt to
live from their own sea that has supported Gaza throughout history:

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Fishermen in the Gaza
Strip have to deal with more than just the typical occupational hazards. Instead of just worrying about holes in their
nets or fuel for their motors, fishermen, like Fadel Abuwarda (30), also have to
think about the regular illegal attacks, arrest, detention and confiscation of
their fishing equipment they are subject to by Israel’s naval forces. It does not matter whether they are within
the 3 nautical miles that Israel has unilaterally declared Gazans are allowed
to fish in. Nowhere in the Gaza Sea are
fishermen safe.

On 20 June 2012, at
around 19:30, Fadel and a friend came under Israeli fire while they were
fishing a mere 1700 meters from the Gaza Strip shore: “We had just thrown our
nets in the water when we saw an Israeli gunboat speeding towards us. We then tried to pull our fishing nets out of
the water and retreat, but they started shooting at us. Each time we made attempts to pull the nets
in, they fired at our boat.”

After opening intensive
fire on the 2 men, the initial Israeli gunboat left and was replaced by a
number of other smaller gunboats with soldiers on board: “The soldiers ordered
us to remove our clothes and jump into the water. We were crying and trying to talk to
them. We told them we were just poor
fishermen trying to make a living for our families. We begged and cried, but they would not want
to listen to anything we had to say.”

Fadel finally decided
to comply with the soldiers’ commands to remove his clothes and jump into the
sea: “I asked my friend to pull the nets out and turn back. He is young, only 19, I thought that they
would let him go back if I offered myself up, but they refused and started
firing at him again. He also removed his
clothes and jumped into the water.”

The
2 fishermen were
then pulled out of the water by the soldiers and onto one of their small
boats
that was circling around their fishing boat.
Fadel’s brother and cousin, as well as 2 other fishermen, were
working nearby on their own boats. A few
minutes later, all 4 of them were arrested and brought onto the small
Israeli
gunboat beside Fadel and his friend: “There were now 6 of us. We were
all blindfolded. They tied our hands and feet and forced us to
sit on the floor. We were all in our
underwear and sat on something that felt like a leather surface. It was
very uncomfortable. We asked them to give us our clothes, but
they only gave them to 4 of us. My
brother and cousin were not given anything to wear It was very
humiliating for
all of us.”

The
6 fishermen were
subsequently taken to the Ashdod port in Israel: “They removed our
blindfolds
and we saw many soldiers waiting for us in Ashdod. I kept wondering why
there were so many of them. We had not done anything wrong. We had
been fishing around 1700 meters from
the shore. We had not even gone near the
3 nautical miles. I just kept telling
them that we are poor fishermen trying to make a living.”

Fadel and the 5 other
fishermen were detained in a cell and each was questioned separately for
approximately 30 minutes. It was
at around midnight when they were left to sleep on mats in the cell: “In the
morning, they blindfolded us again and handcuffed us, then drove us to the Erez
checkpoint and released us there. They
did not tell us anything about our boats and fishing nets, or where we could
find them.”

For Fadel, losing his
only source of livelihood has caused him and his family huge financial strain:
“The losses that my brother and I incurred from losing 35 fishing nets and our
boats amounts to almost 30,000 USD. Until now, I have not heard about my boat and
nets. They are not where we left them
the night we were arrested and currently I have no money to replace them. One of my other brothers is also a fisherman,
so he took pity on me and hired me to work for him. I earn 20- 40 shekel each time I help him
fish. When I had my own boat, I used to
make 200 shekel. I barely have anything
to take home. My wife says I do not bring
money home anymore and this is hard for me.”

As a result of the loss
of his livelihood, Fadel is bracing himself for a bleak and uncertain future:
“I do not know if I will ever get my fishing equipment back. A few days before this incident, they fired at
me and another fisherman on my boat then held us under the sun for about 2
hours for no reason. They always do this
to poor people trying to make a living.
This is my work, my only occupation and my life. What else for me then? It has reached a point where I cannot even
bring myself to be scared anymore. Let
them arrest me if they want, after all, I will just be one of the many
Palestinians locked up in Israeli prisons and if they kill me while I am
fishing - let it be.”

The direct targeting of civilians and
civilian object constitutes a war crime, as codified in Article 8(2) (b) (ii)
of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court. The subsequent enforcement against private
property in the buffer zone results in Palestinians being unable to use the
property necessary for the production of food, violating numerous human rights
provisions, including the right to adequate food contained in Article 6 of the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Israel’s actions against the fishermen is
also a violation of their right to an
adequate standard of living, as codified in Article 25 of the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights and Article 11 of the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

GAZA, (PIC)-- Israeli navy boats opened
heavy machinegun fire at Palestinian fishing boats off the coast of
southern Gaza Strip afternoon Saturday, local sources said.They said that the Israeli gunboats
targeted fishing boats off the Khan Younis and Rafah coasts, adding that
no casualties were suffered despite the intensity of the shooting.Fishermen miraculously survived the shooting after they escaped to the beach, the sources said.

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR)
documented 92 attacks launched by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) against
Palestinian fishermen in the first half of this year, including 54 incidents in
which the IOF fired at fishermen and 16 incidents that led to the arrest of 43
fishermen, in addition to 18 incidents in which boats were confiscated and 4
incidents of damaging and confiscating fishing equipment. In this fact sheet,[2]
which covers the period from 01-30 June 2012, PCHR documented 38 violations
perpetrated by the IOF against Palestinian fishermen, including 23 incidents in
which the IOF fired at fishermen. In
addition, the IOF arrested 13 fishermen in 4 incidents and confiscated 7
fishing boats and equipment.

Violation of
the Right to Life and Security of Person

Israel’s attacks against Palestinian fishermen
in the Gaza Strip constitutes a flagrant violation of international humanitarian
and human rights law, especially the right to life and security of the person,
in accordance with Article 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Article
6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the
State of Israel is a party. The IOF
perpetrated violations against Palestinian fishermen in the sea, when these fishermen
did not pose any threat to Israeli naval troops. The fishermen were practicing their right to
work and seeking their livelihood within the territorial waters of the Gaza
Strip when the IOF indiscriminately fired at them.

First: Firing
at Fishing Boats in the Gaza Strip Waters

During the reporting period, PCHR documented 23
cases in which IOF fired at Palestinian fishermen in the sea off the Gaza shore,
though no injuries were reported. These
attacks took place within the 3 nautical miles allowed for fishermen to sail
and fish in. PCHR also noticed that
these firing incidents against fishermen and their boats took place in the
context of seeking their livelihood, and the imposition of more restrictions to
terrify and prevent the fishermen from practicing their work freely.

At
approximately 00:00 on 06 June 2012, the IOF's gunboats surrounded 3 fishing
boats with 3 fishermen on board off Rafah shore in the southern Gaza
Strip. The fishermen are: Mohammed
Mohammed Ibrahim al-Bardaweel (23); his brother Isma'il (19); and Sami 'Adnan
Ibrahim al-Nada (17), all from al-Mawasi area in Rafah. The IOF transported them to the Ashdod
Seaport, and they were released at 17:00 on the same day.

At
approximately 22:00 on 12 June 2012, Israeli naval troops arrested Mohammed
'Aziz Radwan Bakr (19) and Mahmoud 'Aziz Radwan Bakr (22), when they were
sailing 2 nautical miles off Rafah shore.
They were both transported to the Ashdod Seaport, and were released at
approximately 13:30 on 13 June 2012.

At
approximately 22:00 on 17 June 2012, the IOF deployed in the sea off
al-Sudaniya shore in the northern Gaza Strip arrested Mohammed Sobhi Sa'dallah
(25) and Ashraf Sobhi Sa'dallah (30), both from the Jabalya refugee camp in the
northern Gaza Strip.

At
approximately 20:00 on 20 June 2012, the IOF deployed off al-Waha Resort
northwest of Beit Lahia surrounded 3 fishing boats with 6 fishermen on
board. The IOF transported the fishermen
to the Ashdod Seaport. The fishermen,
who are from Jabalya refugee camp, were identified as: Fadel Saleh Abu Warda
(31); Hatem Saleh Abu Warda (40); Mohammed Matar Khella (50); Mahmoud Mohammed
Abu Warda (20); Abed Sobhi Sa'dallah (20); and No'man Ibrahim al-Sersek
(18). At approximately 19:30, they were
released after being questioned by the IOF.

Confiscation of
Fishing Boats

PCHR has followed up on Israel’s violations
against Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza Strip sea, particularly the
confiscation of fishing boats. During
the reporting period, 3 incidents took place in which the IOF confiscated 7
fishing boats.

At
approximately 00:00 on 06 June 2012, the IOF confiscated 3 fishing boats
belonging to Mohammed Mohammed Ibrahim al-Bardaweel (23) and his brother
Isma'il (19), from al-Mawasi area in the west of Rafah, which had been sailing
off Rafah shore in the southern Gaza Strip.

At
approximately 22:00 on 06 June 2012, the IOF confiscated the boat of 'Aziz
Radwan Bakr (50), which had been sailing off Rafah shore in the southern Gaza
Strip.

At
approximately 20:00 on 20 June 2012, the IOF confiscated 3 fishing boats
belonging to a number of fishermen, which had been sailing off al-Waha Resort
shore, northwest of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip.

Damage and
Confiscation of Fishing Equipment

During the reporting period, 3 incidents took
place in which the IOF confiscated and damaged fishing equipment.

At
approximately 08:30 on 11 June 2012, the IOF confiscated 1,000 meters of
fishing nets belonging to Jihad Bashir Abu Riyala (22).

At
approximately 19:30 on 17 June 2012, the IOF damaged 500 meters of fishing nets
belonging to Mahmoud Ahmed Matar (22), when he was sailing 2 nautical miles off
al-Sudaniya shore north of Gaza.

At
approximately 08:00 on 27 June 2012, the IOF confiscated and damaged a fishing
net belonging to Tayseer Abed Qasem al-Aqra' (31) and Wesam Borhom al-Qor'an
(20), while they were sailing 2.5 nautical miles off Deir al-Balah shore in the
central Gaza Strip.

Table shows
Israel’s violations against Palestinian fishermen during the first half of 2012

Month

Shooting
incidents

Persons
wounded

Arrest

incidents

Persons
arrested

Confiscation
of fishing boats

Damage
to fishing tools

January

1

0

1

4

1

0

February

5

0

3

5

3

0

March

2

0

0

0

0

0

April

8

0

4

12

3

0

May

15

0

4

9

4

0

June

23

0

4

13

7

4

Total

54

0

16

43

18

4

[1]The issuance of this fact sheet coincides with the fifth
anniversary of the imposition of the naval blockade on the Gaza Strip.

[2]This
fact sheet issued by PCHR is the seventh of its kind. It addresses violations carried out by the IOF
against Palestinian fishermen in the Gaza Strip while practicing their
work. For more details, see Fact Sheets at:
www.pchrgaza.org.